Hi all,
Im just about to get myself back into playing. I had lessions for 12 months but due to work / kids I stopped playing (this was 20 years ago) Kids now grown up and I have some time. I have learned to play the guitar to intermediate standard over last 2 years and now I want to learn keyboards again. I love the old 80's synths and I have a technics KN550 keyboard I have the leads to attach to the PC so I can use VST synths but what I would really like is something which makes me sound good. In the 80's I used a technics G7 organ and that would play complex bass and counter rythums that when playing a beginner basic song made you sound really good (as long as you hit the tight notes in the first place) is there anything about that can help me sound good while im getting back up to speed ?

You might want to consider Reason. It comes with some good software synths, samplers, a drum machine, a step sequencer and plenty of effects. If you are familiar with analog gear then there shouldn't be much of a learning process. Reason models the GUI after actual instruments, so anyone can dive right in, create a few drum patterns and sequences, and have a song in no time.

The 3rd song on this page was my first song I did with Reason (First Reason) and completed it in a few hours:

It isn't an overly complex example, but it shows you how easy it is to make something without putting a lot of time into learning the app.

Then, if you do move on to other DAW software you have the option to use Reason synced to those apps through ReWire. I often still use Reason for drums and the occasional software synth._________________JacobWatters.com
Synth & DJ Product Specialist, Roland Canada

Hi,
I will just be playing basis beginner tunes nothing of my own and dont want to have to program for every song. Im looking for something that will add bass and fill to any chord im playing automatically. Is there anything like that ? Im very new to softsynths and did try reason demo a while back but did not give it the time to learn how to use it. Once im playing again I will look at that sort of thing but really looking for instant playability so I sound ok while im learning again.

You can find used Yamahas from the PSR lineup for pretty cheap. Usually the higher the number the more options they have, and the newer they look the better they sound._________________JacobWatters.com
Synth & DJ Product Specialist, Roland Canada

I will just be playing basis beginner tunes nothing of my own and dont want to have to program for every song. Im looking for something that will add bass and fill to any chord im playing automatically. Is there anything like that ?

I am familiar some of the Roland "Intelligent Arranger/Realtime Arranger" boxes from the 1990s. It sounds like you are looking for something like that but in a software version. Here's how they work: you select a style of music and based on the chords you play, the box does an arrangement. I have two samples at my website http://e-univercity.com/mp3player/ .

On the first track, "T'mahnitchah," you can hear a Roland RA-30 playing bass and drums as the underpinning to some layered stuff I did. A few tracks down, you can hear an orchestrated chord progression in "2006-01-14" after which I layered some textural sounds while a single orchestrated chord plays until the final chord progression with un poco rit.

Also, between the 36 minute mark and the 46 minute mark of http://www.electro-music.com/forum/post-289191.html#289191 , the RA-30 is played along with a few other things. Again, there are orchestrated chords followed by some improvising on top of a single chord. The output is also driving a single patch on an old Casio CZ synth.

I just checked ebay. These things used to be quite inexpensive. There must be others who have made similar hardware. If you can find one with full midi I/O, you could route the midi data into a softsynth.

Just some options to consider if this is the kind of thing you are looking for.

I have never used it, so I have no idea if it works in real time or if you have to enter the basic tune first as notation._________________A Charity Pantomime in aid of Paranoid Schizophrenics descended into chaos yesterday when someone shouted, "He's behind you!"

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